Great Kung Lao
Kung Lao (Chinese: 空佬; pinyin: Kōnglăo) is a player character in the Mortal Kombat fighting game series. Kung Lao is a former Shaolin monk and a former member of the White Lotus Society. He stands in the shadow of his great ancestor, the Great Kung Lao, but unlike his great ancestor he has no desire to be champion and would rather live a life of peace. He is close friends to the Mortal Kombat champion Liu Kang as well, he has sought counsel from master Bo' Rai Cho. He has since left the sanctuary of the White Lotus Society. His trademark is his razor-rimmed hat, which he can employ in combat. Character design As stated in Kung Lao's bio card that after the first Mortal Kombat game, the creators wanted a monk character other than Liu Kang. According to Mortal Kombat co-creator John Tobias, Kung Lao's hat was inspired by the 1964 James Bond movie Goldfinger, in which a villain Oddjob threw his special derby hat as a deadly weapon. Kung Lao was portrayed by Anthony Marquez in Mortal Kombat II and Mortal Kombat 3 and Ed Boon said Marquez was as "one of the best martial artists we worked with." Kung Lao is read in Chinese as 公老 (Gōng lǎo) and is roughly translated as "Old Man". Storyline 'Mortal Kombat II' Kung Lao is possibly (next to Liu Kang) the last known descendant of the Great Kung Lao, a former Champion of Mortal Kombat, who lost the title and his life to Goro 500 years previously, resulting in the start of Shang Tsung's rule over the tournament. Kung Lao was originally the one to represent the Shaolin in the Mortal Kombat tournament but he declined, knowing of the consequences of becoming champion. As a result, Liu Kang was chosen and emerged as the winner. When the Shaolin temple was attacked by Baraka and his Tarkatan soldiers, Liu Kang and Kung Lao resolved to travel through the portal to the Outworld and avenge their fallen Shaolin brothers. Kung Lao's ultimate goal was however to rebuild the White Lotus Society at the Wu Shi Academy in order to train a new generation of warriors for the coming ages. Following Shao Kahn's defeat at Liu Kang's hand, the monks returned to Earth and began training the next generation of Shaolin warriors. (Kung Lao's character bio was not included in the arcade version of Mortal Kombat 3, but was later made available for the home versions.) 'Mortal Kombat 3' When Shao Kahn invaded Earthrealm, Kung Lao had to temporarily scrap his plans for reforming the Society. Eventually, he faced Shao Kahn. The Emperor of Outworld defeated Kung Lao and injured him so badly that he was believed to have died. Hearing of Kung Lao's apparent death enraged Liu Kang, who challenged Shao Kahn and successfully defeated him for the second time. 'Mortal Kombat Gold' With Outworld driven back, Kung Lao decided not to return to Shaolin, instead allowing everyone to believe that he was dead and went on to live a life of peace in respect to the beliefs of his ancestors. This would not last long however, as he was drawn away from his newfound peace to help fight against Shinnok's forces, when word reached him that Goro was still alive. After Shinnok's defeat, Kung Lao attacked Goro, who had signed a peace treaty with the Centaurs under the mediation of Kitana. Instead of being an attempted assassination, however, the blow was a ceremonial strike of vengeance for the Great Kung Lao's death. With this act, the two warriors shook hands, ending their conflict. 'Deadly Alliance' The next years were peaceful. This ended on a brutal note at the time of Mortal Kombat: Deadly Alliance, when the sorcerers Quan Chi and Shang Tsung united and murdered Liu Kang in a vicious attack. Kung Lao found his body and was told by Raiden that Tsung was the assassin, who had formed the Deadly Alliance with Quan Chi. Enraged, Kung Lao vowed revenge upon the sorcerer, and once again abandoned his pacifist Shaolin beliefs. He believed his current skills were insufficient to defeat Shang Tsung so after meeting with the other Earthrealm warriors and traveling to Outworld. Kung Lao informed Kitana of Liu Kang's death and she tagged along with Kung Lao and sought the advice of the martial arts teacher Bo' Rai Cho, who trained Kung Lao for a short time. Together, they joined the other warriors in the assault against the two sorcerers. 'Deception' But the assault did not end well and, with Liu Kang dead, Raiden and his companions were fighting a losing battle. Kung Lao and Kitana challenged the Deadly Alliance. Kitana would fall against Quan Chi and Kung Lao would fall to the hands of Shang Tsung, leaving only Raiden to battle the Deadly Alliance. However, Kung Lao was then revived by Onaga, the Dragon King, as a slave during the events of Mortal Kombat: Deception. He and the rest of his brainwashed allies were later released from Onaga's spell by the spirit of Liu Kang after being defeated by Ermac. After being released from the spell, he and everyone else embraced Liu Kang as they celebrate their short lived defeat. 'Armageddon' The God of Wind Fujin's bio for Mortal Kombat: Armageddon describes Kung Lao as having joined forces with him to bring their former comrades Raiden and Liu Kang under control, with the God of Thunder becoming "as ruthless as Shao Kahn" and Liu Kang's corpse selectively slaying various people. Fujin then goes on to state in his bio that if no way was found to revert the two corrupted warriors back to normal, both he and Kung Lao would be forced to finish them.4 During the course of the game, Kung Lao successfully kills Baraka in battle, but is eventually slain by Shinnok's clone. 'Shaolin Monks' In the adventure game Mortal Kombat: Shaolin Monks, an alternate depiction of the events between the first and second Mortal Kombat games, Kung Lao's character was explored to a greater degree than had been shown in previous titles. Kung Lao is portrayed in this game as feeling almost resentful of Liu Kang's victory in the Shaolin tournament. Although he and Liu Kang are shown to be friends - much of the time - he constantly baits his fellow Shaolin monk, especially regarding Princess Kitana, and the tournament that "Raiden" (in reality, a disguised Shang Tsung) has sent them to compete in. A rivalry between the two Shaolin monks was hence established for the first time in Shaolin Monks. As the two fighters defeated Shang Tsung's warriors, they gained victories in Mortal Kombat, forming a race of sorts to become the Champion of Mortal Kombat. Kung Lao, especially, is seen gloating to Liu Kang that he will win this tournament. This rivalry escalates until the two warriors are convinced that the other has been corrupted by the Outworld. 'Mortal Kombat (2011)' During the in-game story, Raiden has been given foreboding visions from his future self, and begins to try and change the events that will lead to Armageddon. He allows Kung Lao to fight and defeat Kintaro, however, Lao is then killed by Shao Kahn. This enrages Liu Kang who avenges his friend's death, apparently killing Kahn. Kung Lao's ending after defeating Shao Kahn show him at his ancestor's burial site with Raiden, where he is a given a vision of the past. Because of this vision it is discovered that Kung Lao is in fact the reincarnation of the Great Kung Lao.